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Microsoft CEO Ballmer Sees Bright Future for Windows Phone 8

Well, it’s small, but perfectly formed. That’s according to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, and he’s referring to the Windows Phone mobile operating system. Ballmer noted that Windows Phone remains “relatively small” in the smartphone marketplace, but said the latest version of the company’s operating system will spark sales.

"I expect the volumes on Windows Phone to really ramp quickly," Ballmer said today during a launch event for Windows 8 in Tel Aviv, Israel. "With the work we have done with Nokia, HTC, Samsung and others ... there is now an opportunity to create really a strong third participant in the smartphone market," he added.

The company has stiff competition: with Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android platform dominating the world smartphone market, Microsoft will have to run fast and hard to catch up. So do its hardware partners.

Nokia last week launched its Windows 8-based Lumia smartphones, on which the troubled Finnish company's recovery hopes rest. Nokia, once the world's biggest mobile phone manufacturer, last month reported an underlying loss for a third straight quarter, according to Reuters.

Research company IDC recently examined the worldwide smartphone market and found that Google’s Android market share has grown to a staggering 75 percent, up from 57.5 percent in the same period last year. Apple's share of the market also grew to 14.9 percent during the third quarter, from 13.8 percent a year earlier.

Ballmer said that Microsoft plans to embark on an ambitious marketing and advertising campaign around Windows 8, its Surface tablet and Windows Phone that will hopefully raise awareness in the smartphone marketplace.